Some people have asked me what do I mean by “Practical Kamitic Spirituality?” Well, before answering I have to say that it amazes me that whenever someone talks about Kamitic spirituality (or spirituality in general), the first thing that they want to discuss is metaphysics. They come in talking about astrology, the stars, etc. when I ask one question like, “Do you have any peace?”

I feel like Neo talking to the Source. Like…

“DUDE…WTH are you talking about?”

“I asked you a simple Yes or No question.

And you gave me a whole search engine of answers.”

I mean, I ain’t mad or anything becuz I use to be just like this equating knowledge/information as wisdom. It took me a “minute” to figure out that true spirituality can’t be learned from a book anyway, because books are nothing but guides. They can point you in the right direction but they can’t make you live maa (truth).

Now don’t get me wrong. Metaphysics, history, science, religion, philosophy, etc. are all dope and I use to study all of these subjects in order to help me make sense of life. The goal of course was that through studying these subjects somehow I would become more enlightened and develop a more intimate relationship with God by merging consciousness with the Divine. I had dreamed that through these efforts I would be able to accomplish anything because I was finally one with God. Then something remarkable happened.

That’s right. I woke up (hahaha).

Fortunately I had someone who helped me to understand. That the expansion of the mind and spirit, in order to achieve oneness with the Divine is great, but if the mystical way cannot help you to be a better husband or wife, have a healthier body, pay your bills on time, be a better friend, etc.? Then it is useless.

A practical perspective would be to use spiritual practices and techniques to attain real everyday goals as the ones mentioned earlier. If one for instance, meditated on trying to improve their behavior, finances, etc. If during the practice they happened to merge consciousness then that’s great, but if they don’t. It is still great because it was not purpose of the meditation in the first place. Enlightenment as you can see from a practical Kamitic perspective is just a pleasant side effect like a bonus.

It is through the practical approach one begins to see that there is a big difference from reading and studying truth versus living truth, hence the maa aankh. When you read and study truth what you are really doing is reading about what someone else thinks. And, if you search the web, you will find that there are a lot of theories out there, which can be like Mr. Smith.

It is only when you really begin to live TRUTH that you realize that everything that physically exists came into existence from the Spirit. Therefore, a thought is impressed upon the Spirit causes things to manifest from the spiritual into the physical. This makes it possible for you to manifest miracles in your life through the Power of God regardless of what one believes and thinks. You can then propose your own theory as to how things work because it is based upon your experience, your TRUTH.

So, when I say Practical Kamitic Spirituality, I mean just that… Something that works! I am talking about knowing that Npu (Anpu/Anubis) is real because you have seen his red/black/white physical manifestation appear to you via a stranger to guide you away from danger. This is one way I knew that God hears our prayers. This is what I mean by practical, like what has Kamitic spirituality done and continues to do. You know, I recovered from an illness and part of the reason why this miracle occurred was because I stopped focusing on how I got it and how to overcome it. Instead I focused on what I wanted, which was to be healthy. It took a little time but in time my spirit was convinced that I was never ill. I got a job the same way and money for a project the same way. Some would call it magic but if I have used the same procedure several times to get similar results. I think we call that science, right?

So, the time has come for us to get real and find the earthly words to express this divine logic. It is time out for messing around because people are in need of a healing. It is time to let people know that Kamitic spirituality is real and their descendants are spread throughout the diaspora.

So, don’t get boggled down with the mystical theories. Accept that miracles happen. In fact, believe that miracles happen and when that miracle happens in your life. Be grateful for it. Accept it and then ask to understand it.

There’s been a recent buzz about the ring shout dance that early African Americans and some contemporary descendants have done in the church. This dance, which was done in the fields and performed in front of the pulpit in churches, is being recognized as the foundation of Afro-American cultural expression. But, as always when there is no physical evidence that remains because it was destroyed through conquest, invasion, colonialism, etc. Scholars claim that the origin of our cultural practices are obscure, derived from some African dance and most likely from the interaction with some more “educated” group of people prior to slavery, usually Islamic West Africans. The same ridiculous claim was made about Ifa and the sacred writings done in the sand, but that’s another story.

This is the case with the ring shout. Since black people have called dancing in the church “shouting.” It is believed that the word “shout” most likely comes from the Arabic word “shaw’t” meaning circumambulation of the Kaaba. The claim is that since Muslim West Africans couldn’t go to Mecca and walk around the sacred Kaaba site. These Africans created their own ritualistic way of performing the Hajj pilgrimage.

Really???

This claim could hold water if it wasn’t for the fact, that the ring shout dance was not only performed in the United States but also in Jamaica, Trinidad, Cuba, Puerto Rico and parts of Brazil. The whole concept of moving in a circular motion is African thinking and the African American influence comes from the Kongo-Angolan region. The people from the Kongo-Angolan region were the first indentured servants and slaves brought to the Americas. They were also the first to step foot on the shores of North America, which is why it is estimated that 1/3 of the African American population is of Kongo-Angolan descent.

Let’s give credit where credit is due.

Yes, there were some Muslim West African influence brought to the Americas, which can be heard in blues music, but the ring shout dance is from Central Africa. The ring shout dance, which is a counter-clockwise march is based upon the movement of the sun that rises in the east (right), peaks in the north, sets in the west (left) and is reborn in the south. Is a ritualistic or shamanistic ritual performed around the dikenga, yowa or Kongo Cross cosmogram, which was the foundation of the Kongo Society. Anyone that is involved in Bantu-Kongo derived cultural practice will have in the deep recesses of their mind an image of the Kongo Cross, because it permeates every aspect of one’s life. Since the Kongo-Angolan people were the first Africans that the Europeans encountered and enslaved. The Kongo-Angolan people were the most “documented” and “researched.” Proof of the use of this cosmogram can be found in Wyatt MacGaffey’s Religion and Society in Central Africa and Robert F. Thompson’s Flash of the Spirit and Four Moments of the Sun. Here one can find evidence that prior to the advent of the slave trade, the BaKongo (Kongo people) would march around the king’s compound in the same counter-clockwise formation. A similar practice was performed at the death of respected individuals, which can be seen in the New Orleans Jazz funerals.

The big question that should come to mind is why? Why counter clockwise? Why was the ring shout dance so important? Why is the ring shout the basis of Afro-American musical expression, such as jazz, blues and gospel. And, what does the ring shout dance, jazz funeral, death and the Spirit all have in common? The answer can be found in the Kamitic philosophy (ancient Egypt), which had a similar ritualistic approaches and practices. In Kamit, the sun as Khepera rose in the east, peaked at midday as Ra, set in the west as Ra Atum and was reborn in the south as Amun Ra, which is what I call this unique discovery or Kamitic-Kongo cosmogram, the maa aankh,

Amun Ra deals with REBIRTH!

Amun Ra is not a god! Amun Ra is the Kamitic moment of the sun that corresponds to REBIRTH, that the Ba-Kongo called MUSONI. This is why our ancestors met clandestine in the cabins, fields, etc. and did the ring shout, because through the ecstatic dance they could RECREATE themselves in the foreign land they found themselves in. Through dance and trance one is able to communicate with the Spirit(s) and get fresh, new ideas and create success. This in my opinion is how Kamitic success was truly created.

Nowadays, many devout church goers do not do the ring shout because times aren’t that hard anymore. Slavery is over (or is it?) Folks got good jobs, some education and are livin’ good. I ain’t mad at you – SMILE:) – Keep doing you…but folks don’t ring shout because they got new suits. Sistas ain’t trying to sweat out their perms or get a sweat ring around their hats. Ain’t nobody trying to get funky….but, when times get hard. Folks will march around the Walls of Jericho (metaphorically speaking – problems that they face) in the church, in the same counter-clockwise direction. We need to learn how to do the same.

Want to give it a try?

Write down on a sheet of paper an issue you are having or need some help in resolving. Also write down possible solutions to the problem. Next imagine a cross being on the floor and lay the sheet of paper in the center. Now put on some contemplative and rhythmic music that you are fond of preferably, blues, jazz or even some old gospel music. Make sure the cd is on repeat. State aloud the things in your life you are grateful for and ask for a solution to be revealed to you. Then dance in a counter-clockwise circle for a solution by focusing only on the question. Ignore all thoughts and ideas that come to mind and continue to restate in your mind your question that you need help resolving. Allow the Spirit through the music and dance to move you. Dance for at least nine minutes and then stop.

Now pay attention because a solution to your request will come to you when you least expect it. The answer to your request may come while you are watching tv, driving to work, washing dishes, talking to a friend, etc. The solution may come to you in your dreams or as a premonition. You will know when it is from the Spirit because it will be like an inner knowing. When it comes, accept it, express your gratitude for it and act on it.

Kamit (Kemet, Ancient Egypt) has been a source of inspiration for people all over the world, but to many people of African descent, who lost their cultural heritage due to the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade. Kamit serves as a beacon of hope and a doorway, where all that has been lost through slavery can be found. The reason is because Kamit is the greatest, most memorable and the longest standing African civilization that was built. Thanks to the numerous contributions made by black and white scholars like Sir E.A. Wallis Budge, who went against his colleagues by stating in his book Osiris and the Egyptian Resurrection (1911),

“There is no doubt that the beliefs examined herein are of indigenous origin, Nilotic or Sundani in the broadest signification of the word, and I have endeavoured to explain those which cannot be elucidated in any other way, by the evidence which is afforded by the Religions of the modern peoples who live on the great rivers of East, West, and Central Africa . . . Now, if we examine the Religions of modern African peoples, we find that the beliefs underlying them are almost identical with those Ancient Egyptian ones described above. As they are not derived from the Egyptians, it follows that they are the natural product of the religious mind of the natives of certain parts of Africa, which is the same in all periods.”

Although it remains debated because no solid anthropological proof of has been found. Kamit is believed to be the ancestral homeland that many existing Sub-Saharan African cultures migrated from, to their present locations in Africa. This is based upon cultural correspondences that have been found between the Kamitic and other African cultures such as belief in One Supreme God, greater importance upon the Moon than Sun, transmigration of the soul, the importance of dreams, the significance of the color white and its association with the purity, the honorable ancestors and legendary deceased king Osar (Asar, Ausar, Osiris) known as Khenti-Amenti. What this means to many African descendants, is that those Africans that were enslaved and shipped to the Americas carried within them a cultural memory that unites them back to Kamit.

It is this cultural memory that survived mainly through the Kongo-Angolan lineage in North America, that was responsible for the development of the African American church. To this day, these post-Kamitic Kongo-Angolan cultural influences can still be seen amongst African Americans who wear white roses in honor of their ancestors. Who believe in the importance in dreams, recognize concepts like spiritual rebirth (especially through baptism), believe that when they die they will see their ancestors in the heavens, and although not a Christian concept, also believe that children are “old souls” or reincarnated ancestors.

It is these surviving cultural beliefs and practices, which I have syncretized with the Kamitic theology, African American folk beliefs and Afro-Caribbean Spiritism, that I call Kamta, which resides deep in our spirit.

It is through Kamta I discovered that we all have aakhu (ancestral spirits/spirit guides) that walk with us and never went away just because the dominant society suppressed the belief in them. Our aakhu encourage and inspire every aspect of our life, from the prosperity of our family, success in school, peace within our communities to our personal health and wellbeing.

We also have our share our aapepu (mischevious, malevolent, misguided spirits/ghosts) that create mischief in our life as well. The aapepu, which means “snakes” or “worms” in the Kamitic language are like snakes that lay in our path. They cause us to become alarm when we see them because their negative influences encourages accidents, illness and chaos. This is why I see Set (the envious brother of Osar) as the Lord of the aapepu.

Fortunately, we also have netcharu (benevolent forces, angelic spirits or guardian spirits) that walk with us and help us in our development. For instance, we all have an Npu (Enpu, Sobek, Sebek, Anubis) that acts as our personal guardian and guide. We all have an Osar, Oset and so on that is totally unique to us.

This cultural religious syncretism was made possible, because although the early African Americans brought to North America were not able to preserve all of our cultural traditions. They did manage to preserve enough precepts to provide their descendants with a road map on how to get back home culturally. Thanks to our ancestors we don’t have to adopt, borrow and imitate another’s culture. All we have to do is re-learn about our own.

Do you know why it is important to strengthen and develop your ab (spiritual heart)? Many don’t know or understand the concept of free will and the soul because Westerners are afraid of death and see it as being the end. In Afrospiritual traditions, death is not the end. Death is the start of something new, but in order to make this transformation we have to have a strong ab (spiritual heart).

It is the ab that makes the entire Kamitic theology clear, because our ab is tied to the whole Kamitic spiritual hierarchy and the concept of life after death. This is a pretty interesting yet complex concept to understand because it doesn’t correlate to Western thinking exactly. Like I said, Western thinking in linear and sees death as being the end, whereas African (and non-Western) thought is circular and holistic. So, below is how my aakhu (ancestral spirits) explained this concept to me through a shamanic meditation and divination session. This is what seems to make the most sense to me so, I will try to make this as simple as possible for you all.

We are all spiritual beings that have been infused into a physical body. Our spirit is composed of nine parts (incorrectly called souls) and they are : the khab, khabit, ka, sahu, ab, ren, shekhem, khu and ba. These parts of our spirit are more like consciousness and they can be grouped into three divisions called the ba, sahu and ab.

The first division of the spirit that we are given is our ba (divine conscious), which is said to be the divine spark from God. Our ba provides us with khu (divine wisdom), shekhem (divine power) and ren (our divine name, hence destiny). The purpose of the ba is to help us to spiritually survive. The ba was symbolized as a human headed falcon to indicate that it like a trained bird of prey will return back to its original owner or God. So we have it the ba is closely assoicated with our breath. When body expires its last breath, the ba will return back to God. Besides providing our being with life, the ba draws all of its inspiration from the spiritual realm of the universe. When we sleep, it is the ba that provides us with our dreams by flying wherever it needs to go and communicating the message from the spirit world to the other parts of our being. The ba corresponds to the unconscious. All living beings have a ba. The ba does not reincarnate but is new so that every living being has a fresh start or new and unique experience.

When we are born, we are also given a second divisions called a sahu (physical-body conscious) that governs our khab (physical body), khabit (emotions/animal instincts), and ka (personality), because the purpose of the sahu is to help us to physically survive. To accomplish this feat, our sahu, which is also contains our genetic memories, draws all of what we need to know from the external environment. Our sahu corresponds to the subconscious mind. All living beings have a sahu. The sahu (and its associated parts) reincarnates but only biologically by following one’s lineage in order to provide every living being with the genetic memory to survive. This is how animals through evolution acquire a certain distinctive pattern. In human beings this is how we acquire the physical features, behaviors, etc. of our foreparents.

We are also given an ab (spiritual heart or human conscious), which corresponds to our conscious mind but when we are born, our ab is not strong. This is the reason we have to learn right from wrong, how to be courageous and ethical in the face of fear. We have to strengthen it, which occurs over a course of time. For most, we do not come into the understanding of our ab until we are teenagers. It is then that we learn that our ab is responsible for providing us with free will. It is through our ab we are able to make choices and decisions, but our choices and decisions are influenced by the maa (divine law). As a result, our ab grows and becomes stronger based upon the consequences of our actions and behaviors. It is through the maa that we develop a conscience or strong ab. Only man and woman has been given ab and this is what makes us unique amongst all of the other beings and connects us to God. It is this uniqueness that intimately connects our ab to our ba. It is because of the connection between the ab and the ba that we all feel like we have a higher calling. It is our ab that is the eternal part of our being and the surviving conscious that is reborn.

When an individual physically dies, the ba, which was given to us to help us to spiritually survive, returns to the spiritual aspect of the Universe from whence it came from. The sahu, which was given to us to help us to physically survive returns to the physical aspect of the Universe from whence it came from. The ab, which is the eternal part of our being is the division of the spirit that survives the physical death experience.

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So after death, the newly deceased remains with their body until they are able to pass into the otherworld or KAMTA with a clear conscience or strong ab. (Please note that this entire experience has been fictionized as the Kamitic Weighing of the Heart). If the living remembers the deceased as being a purely evil individual. It will cause their ab to be so heavy, that their guilt (depicted as the Aummit monster) would totally consume their ab and prevent them from ever returning to the land of the living – TASETT to wreak havoc upon humankind. Although this is rare, this usually is what happens to individuals who in life encouraged a lot of chaos and confusion like Hitler and other beast men and women. Most of the time, Aummit will be sent to fetch these individuals, which is why usually these individuals (like Hitler) commit suicide.

If the living remembers the deceased as being a troublemaker that attracted trouble in life usually due to ignorance, misguidance, wrong choices and decisions, etc., which resulted in the deceased dying a violent death or through suicide. It will cause the deceased to have a heavy ab, thus preventing them from passing into other world because now they have grave concerns that are on their mind. Since the choices these individuals made in life caused them to be shunned. In death they are shunned (not spoken of), which makes them visit the places they frequented in life. It is at these places (their homes, bars, clubs, alleyways, etc.) they influence the living with their negative and destructive ways. These deceased are called aapepu (snakes or worms) because they were parasites when they were alive and the maa causes them to be parasites in death. We encounter these negative spirits or ghost whenever we are walking and all of sudden for no apparent reason get an eerie chill up our spine, or for no reason at all have sudden thoughts of anxiety, depression, etc. Other times we know that we may have encountered an aapepu whenever we have an eerie hot and cold sensation, which is proof that these spirits are stuck in TASETT since the desert can become both extremely hot and cold temperature-wise.

If the living remembers the deceased as being an ethical and honorable individual in life. Then the deceased is able to pass into KAMTA with a light ab (clear conscience) where they will become an aakhu (ancestral spirit and spirit guide). God allows the aakhu to be honored and venerated like the Christian martyrs and saints because in life these individuals chose to live a righteous life even in the face of death. It is through their courageous acts of bravery that these individals were tranformed and became emissaries for the Divine. This explains how biological, cultural, historical and mythical individuals even after dying tragically became aakhu like the Preto Velhos (Old Slaves in Brazil), known as Uncle Joe and Auntie (or Papa Joe and Big Momma in the US), El Negro Jose and La Madama in Afro-Cuban spiritual traditions. It is because their ab has been made strong and pure. Since, the aakhu can only address issues that they were familiar with in life. Many aakhu choose to return to the land of the living where they are born through their descendants to master more skills. Others choose to return to the land of the living to assist their descendants by acting as spirit guides and speaking to us through our visions and dreams.

If the deceased after returning to the land of the living and dying with a light heart, numerous times, passes to KAMTA multiple times. The aakhu amongst the aakhu becomes a netcharu (netjaru, neteru, guardian spirit or principle of nature) because they have transformed beyond the organic birth-life-death-rebirth cycle. The netcharu are the masters of all technology and the guardians of God’s mysteries. They are the ones an individual must appeal to in order to master a particular skill and talent from God. The netcharu speak to us through quick flashes of insight. When they make themselves known, it renders us speechless temporarily because it is hard to literally explain what had just occurred. When we encounter the netcharu it is because our awareness had slipped into KAMTA – the underworld – and upon realizing what had occurred returned to the land of the living.

The netcharu exist as a clan of unique spirits and I believe the first and older netcharu are the original founders and leaders of people. It is this connection that ties the netcharu to everyone regardless if one believes in them or not. The older the netcharu the more it was associated with a particular aspect of nature and the more permanent it has become. Fortunately, new netcharu are being created everyday and these younger netcharu are more easy accessible and act as representatives of their clans. For instance, the original Osar is associated with agriculture, morality and stability, which caused him to be connected to the ground and pillars, hence foundation. Osar manifests himself in the mountains, but his representatives or spiritual children can be found in white stones like limestone. The legendary Mother of all mothers, Oset (Aset, Auset, Isis) is associated with the life giving waters and is identified with the sea. She as the ocean is permanent, but her representatives or spiritual child (essence) can be found in certain seashells.

Because death is not the final resting place and the maa mirrors the spiritual and physical world. Lower spirits can advance to the next level, just like human beings. They just have to work hard to do it because this is part of the maa. It is because of the maa, spirits can be offered prayers, light, water, money, the recitation of the psalms, rituals like the novena, and so on, which can elevate the ab of the spirit.

This is why it is best to work on developing and strengthening your ab now, so that upon death. You will have a light ab and be well received by the ancestors that have preceded you.

Excerpts for this post are from Kamta: A Practical Kamitic Path for Obtaining Power by Derric “Rau Khu” Moore, 2011.

I was recently asked why is KAMTA and the maa aankh so important to me? It was a loaded question.

So, I began by stating that it was Brother Arthur Flower’s Hoodooway list (which I had the honor and priviliege of participating on) and the Orb of Djenra blog that first brought to my attention that although early African Americans weren’t able to preserve a large portion of their religious culture as their kin had done in the Caribbean and Latin America. Early African Americans did manage to preserve a great deal of it through dances, folk practices, proverbs, songs and history. It was through these various cultural practices that early African Americans were able to preserve their cultural way by passing on traditions, which became the basis of African American shaman tradition known today as Hoodoo or Rootwork, as it was called in the northern states where I am from.

Contrary to popular belief, Hoodoo/Rootwork has never been all about casting spells for ill, doing magical work and making pacts with the devil. This is all sensational nonsense that was created years ago by racist individuals and promoted through a stereotypical media that took advantage of the public’s ignorance about people of African descent. Unknown to most Hoodoo/Rootwork is an African American folk practice that was created by African Christians during slavery. Like most folk practices such as the European folk practice of reading of the Psalms, praying and saying grace before a meal, the use of sacred objects like blessed oil, blessed water, the Holy Bible and so on. Hoodoo/Rootwork in employed to obtain spiritual and often divine remedies for material and physical ailments such as problems with money, obtaining love, protection from evil and so on. Hoodoo/Rootwork as you can see is very similar to European folk practices. The only difference between the two is that the African American folk practice was created and used by African slaves in order to fight, resist and struggle against the cruelties of slavery.

It was through this folk tradition that the shamanistic practices brought from Africa were able to survive the tragic slave experience and contribute greatly to African American spirituality. As a result, early African Americans were able to continue to mark very important events that occurred in his or her life through a spiritual blueprint or cosmogram called the Kongo Cross.

As I mention in MAA AANKH Vol. 1, I first learned of the Kongo Cross through my deceased grandparents. One day while contemplating how to do something that I remembered my grandparents use to do. Shortly after, my attention was drawn to my grandmother’s obituary notice and there it listed her birthday and the day she died, but most African Americans have a strong ingrained cultural taboo against saying death or that someone died, especially when the individual was a godly-minded individual. Instead most African Americans say that the person “passed” or “passed away”, because although physically they do not exist something within our psyche knows that their soul continues to exist. On my grandmother’s obituary instead of saying like I have seen on other cultures obituary birth and death date, it stated Sunrise and Sunset.

This was amazing to me because I had, had this obituary for the longest time and looked at it numerous times and never saw that. I could’ve called it mere coincidence that I was thinking about doing something that drew my attention to look at my grandmother’s obituary notice. I could if I was arrogant, naïve and didn’t believe in spiritual (invisible, non-material) intercession, but I do, which is how I “humbly” came to realize that ancestral spirits do exist. It was proof that the righteous souls do continue to exist and do not die. In other words, there is “life after death”; these ancestral beings just continually to exist as spirits.

This is how I truly learned about the Kongo Cross and came to really understand African American spirituality. It was this understanding that led me to see that the Kongo Cosmogram besides marking one’s birthday and their death. Also signified other important events like the initiation into African American fraternities and sororities, as well as significant spiritual events like the day an individual was baptized, came to God or converted to their chosen religious faith. It was all a reminder of one of the things older African Americans were known for saying, which is, “That we all have to go through something, in order to get something.” This something I later discovered as I analyzed my life helped me to see that life is all about the choices that we make. It made me realize that many of our choices are ill-informed choices and unwise decisions. Some of us continue to keep making these same choices, which lead us into the same unproductive relationships, same unwise money purchases, etc. All because someone never told us that this is our life and it is up to us to make the best out of it. This means that just like everything else we have to learn how to make better decisions, which means learn from the past (your past and the past of others-ancestors-history).

This is one of the most valuable lessons that I learned from the Kongo Cross, which led to the creation of the maa aankh, a cosmogram inspired by the Kongo Cross but based upon the Kamitic/Kemetic (Ancient Egyptian) concepts and principles. It was through the maa aankh it became apparent that when we learn from our mistakes, face our fears, and overcome our faults, that our spiritual talents are activated. This is our initiation system where we become great healers, musicians, entertainers, speakers, politicians, etc. There are countless stories of African Americans that have had this spiritual awakening. This is why most grown people don’t particular care for teen boppers singing about love because deep down we know that this 15 to 24 years old doesn’t have any real experience with the subject matter. The older folks use to say, “They don’t have any SOUL”. Before then, it was called in our churches ANOINTING.

When you have ANOINTING, it is truly a powerful, cultural experience that can’t be explained in words because it is a mystical connection between you and the Divine. It is similar to an assurance that everything is going to work out but it is also a pledge that you have to do your part.

It is for these reasons I can truly say that the maa aankh is not a New Age, magical circle creation based upon syncretic beliefs with sacred technology. It is truly an initiation system that has been handed down to us from the first Africans brought to North America. The early African Americans just never called it an initiation/spiritual system or “religion” because like most indigenous people. They didn’t regard their spiritual beliefs and practices as a “religion” in the way religion is viewed today as a set of beliefs and practices only performed one or a couple of days out of the week. No, their spiritual beliefs and practices were an integral and seamless part of their way of life. It is this understanding of the maa aankh that makes it so special to me, because it helped me to move beyond intellectualizing about being religious and spiritual, to actually Being

It is from this understanding that I have been informed to refer to this African American cross-spiritual practice as Kamitic/Kemetic shamanism because it offers various forms of healing including giving one a sense of purpose and access to forgotten knowledge (traditions). This is accomplished by entering into an altered mind state or a meditative/mediumistic state of mind, similar to dreaming, except one obtains information and power that can help them in their physical life. It works because it has always been a part of the plan for us to seek and connect with the Divine within our being in order to succeed in life.

I am aware that there are other Kamitic/Kemetic initiation systems that exist and I applaud the creators and founders of those systems, because they assisted me in realizing my divinity, as well. But the maa aankh is truly dear to me for several reasons. The first is because it was derived from my most recent ancestors (my grandparents and great grandparents). Second, since the maa aankh was derived from the Kongo Cross, which was created by the Kongo-Angolan people, a Bantu ethnic group, through it I was able to get a glimpse of my ancestral past. Last but not least, since the maa aankh also helped me to stretch back into time and get a glimpse of my Bantu ancestral memories, I was able to imagine and thus reconnect to those Bantu people that walked alongside the Nile River. There simply is no greater joy than being able to reconnect to the Divine through your ancestral, cultural heritage, because once that connection is made there are unlimited possibilities as to how it can be expressed. Another great advantage is that suddenly your small, limitless world all of sudden expands as you sense the cultural connection between you and others. Everything takes on a new meaning not because you intellectualize it but, because you see the spiritual significance of it. Like Capoeira before I saw it as a beautiful Afro-Brazilian art, but after my experience I see it as totally integral with my way of life. When I do play in a a roda, I found myself easily going into the au (cartwheel) to access power or axe’ (ashe) from below (within, from the ancestors, etc. however you want to look at it). Dancing rather it be to Mary Mary’s God in Me, Machel Montano’s Too Young to Soca, Bob Marley’s Soul Shake Down Party, Holwin Wolf Smokestack Lightnin to Celena Gonzalez’ Santa Barbara or Bamboleo’s Tecapacita. It all has new meaning because even dancing helps to propel into the mystical realm some refer to as Zen. It is all part of the awakening experience where one is blessed, and his or her talents are awakened, as they feel the Spirit, hence ANOINTING.

Simply put, it is a spiritual system that acknowledges our divinity because it is based upon our biological and cultural identity/self.

A lot of people would like to know was Jesus a Kamitic initiate. Well, it is not known for sure if he was or wasn’t. I wondered about this when I was growing up, which is part of the reason why I embarked upon this journey so many years ago. You see, I remember being told when I was younger that the Egyptians were a horrible idol worshipping people that enslaved the “Chosen People” of God. But, I couldn’t for the like of me understand that if the Kamitic people were so evil, why the Daniel, the kid that had the coat of many colors, serve as a vizier? Why did the Joseph flee with Mary and Jesus to Kemet or Kamit, and stay for so long if they were enemies of God?

Then when I got older and continued my research, I wondered why was Moses according to Acts 7:20-22 educated in the ways of the Kamitic people, if the Kamitic people were so evil? It would take years for me to discover that it is because God never cursed or considered the Kamitic people to be evil. This was a gross assumption that someone made and they ran with it. It was another way of trying to promote the twisted theory that the descendants of Ham or Kam were a cursed and wicked people. People swallowed it hook and bait because the bible was interpreted literally and has been used as a world history book.

When it is understood that the bible is all about the genealogical seed of Adam and it is interpreted from that perspective of how anyone can achieve great things. It becomes easy to see why our ancestors in the Americas, kin in Caribbean (Rastafarians) and martyrs like Nat Turner, Harriet Tubman, Marcus Garvey, Elijah Muhammad, Haile Selassie, Malcolm X, and Civil Rights leaders like Martin L. King Jr. and others were able to use the bible as a tool against racism and slavery. They understood the ancient African science of conjuring.

When you understand the power of the Spirit in relation to the Soul, Kamit metaphorically and metaphysically speaking becomes a port of entry. We enter Kamit every time we close our eyes, but only a few of the biblical characters actually were initiated into it. Does it make sense now, why Moses and Jesus went to Kamit?

Interesting thing. This just came to me…Acts 17:20 “You are bringing some strange ideas to our ears, we want to know what they mean.”

So, I want people to understand that true spirituality from my experience is not anti-religion and for that matter it is not anti-Christian. Hell. Since I have embarked upon this journey I have practiced more Christian tenets than I ever wanted to and you know the reason why? Because the true tenets or laws of Christianity aren’t Christian, they are Ancient Egyptian! (Actually they are older than that but, that’s another story).

People get this confused I think because they are so mesmerized by the Kamitic mental science. All of these scholars have come out saying that the Western religions are derived from the Kamitic religion. Then when life puts them in a situation where they have to practice what they preach like “oneness” or forgive (“not forget“) but forgive, they say, “Oh. That’s teaching from the enemy”. They think that Jesus created this whole thing about forgiveness…umm. If you read the Story of Osar (Asar, Ausar, Osiris), Oset (Aset, Auset, Isis) was the first one that taught about forgiveness, she had to forgive Set for all of the evil that he had done. Forgiveness by the way is a Kamitic concept and principle based upon Maa, which is Kamitic/Kemetic for balance, law, order, justice and righteousness. Jesus simply broke it down in terms that the people he was talking to could understand, but he didn’t invent this concept and principle. Did the Kamitic people invent it? Probably not, remember their ancestors were from the south. The point is who cares who invented it. What’s important is that we understand it and implement it to improve our lives.

You see, the problem with principles like these is that no one explained why you are supposed to forgive. Many of us are still screwed up by the Civil Rights Movement and can’t believe that our folks didn’t strike back when the dogs, fire hydrant, spit and all sorts of other things were done to them. I can still hear it, “Couldn’t have been me.” Right?

Well, I can’t explain it because it is something you have to experience…that is true spirituality. It can’t be theorized. When all you do is think about it, all you are doing is intellectualizing it and not applying it, which doesn’t go far.

This is what I mean by throwing out the baby and the bathwater. If you accept that the origins of the Western religion comes from Kamit/Kemet, then Kamitic/Kemetic spirituality is all about getting the FULL PICTURE, the whole message straight from the horse’s mouth sort of speak. When you have confusion, setbacks, etc. it is because from the Kamitic perspective, you only got one side of the picture, one piece of the pie, one eye (which is why Hru had to flee in the Story of Osar) because Set gouged his eye out. This is illustrated on the maa aankh as being in the red or the RED LANDS, which is TASETT, the land of confusion, conflict and chaos ruled by Set. You have to focus on getting out of the a chaotic, war state because you’re at the Ra moment.

The full picture comes from traveling to the other side, to the fertile lands below, the mysterious land of our ancestors, the spiritual realm within our being, the beautiful BLACK LANDS OF KAMTA. It requires that you become receptive and you move to the Amun Ra moment. Oh come and go with me, it is so peaceful :).

You know, I had the hardest time trying to make things work for me spiritually because I threw out everything. It wasn’t until I dragged myself to this realization (like Hru) that things began to change and I was reborn. It wasn’t until I was reminded that the whole purpose of me embarking upon this journey was to learn how the Kamitic/Kemetic people used the same Holy Ghost that Christians talked about to build their society.
An example of what I mean by practicing Kamitic or shall we say pre-Christian tenets, I once upon a time had to bite a hole in my tongue, suck in my gut and swallow that pride in the face of my enemy, and after I did it. Surprisingly, he donated some money to me and my cause, about a $150 worth. Now, some can call it magic, others can call it a miracle; I call it the Power of God or Rau at work because I didn’t pick and choose what principles I would follow. What would you call it?